comment_mqkyx7x

comment May 04, 2025 Score: 1 u/Opposite_Vanilla676

Comment_mqkyx7x

I appreciate your comment. I take full accountability for the fact that I didn’t technically meet the Excelsior Scholarship’s timeline requirement. But I think the way the program is structured and how strictly the rules are enforced doesn’t leave room for the real-life circumstances a lot of students face.

I was juggling two jobs and navigating college during the pandemic. I genuinely thought I was on track. I didn’t realize that needing one extra semester to finish my associate’s degree due to credit transfer issues would disqualify me retroactively.

Despite that, I still graduated with my bachelor’s degree on time, made the Dean’s List, and never took a break in my education. But now, because of that one semester, they’ve reversed all my Excelsior funding and say I owe nearly $10,000.

So no, I don’t think this is black and white. I believe in taking responsibility, but I also think this situation is unfair and emblematic of how higher education systems often fail the very students they claim to support. I’m currently in contact with higher ed offices, and I’m trying to enroll at Hunter College, but this unresolved debt is standing in my way.

I’m speaking up not to dodge what I owe, but to advocate for a more compassionate and realistic approach to helping students succeed.

Cited In

Cited In